Blacklisted comedian calls for president's resignation

Byron Bay comedian Akmal Saleh has joined protesters calling for the resignation of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak.

Saleh moved from Egypt to Australia in 1975 at the age of 11. He has not returned to his homeland in the past decade because he fears he will be arrested.

Saleh criticised Mubarak during a performance at an Australian-Arabic Doctors Association function 10 years ago and was told his safety could not be guaranteed if he tried to visit Egypt.

"I was in Australia and I performed a stand-up comedy routine and the Egyptian ambassador happened to be there with his entourage and I did a little routine about Mubarak... and people got so offended and I was stopped and the ambassador got up and left in protest," he said.

"I was told my phone was going to be tapped and my uncle, who had booked me for the gig, rang me and said 'listen, I've just got news that there's a file out with your name and if you go back to Egypt you will probably be arrested... and you don't know what they're going to do, it's a military regime that is capable of anything."

Saleh said an overthrow of the Mubarak Government was long overdue.

"Since the pharaohs we haven't had a democratic system in place and this guy has been in for 30 years and he's imposed martial law basically. Any policeman can arrest any body and torture them just because they felt like it and there's nowhere you can go and complain," he said.

"The corruption is just so overwhelming - it's so blatant that the people have just had enough."